Flame's Shadow
by Gwaeren
Summary: Zack always knew Reno had a past he didn't like to talk about. His Company File stated he grew up in the Slums, but he never could have guessed what that really meant. Rating for language and mature themes, including m/m relationship. Mako Tears Universe.


Title: Flame's Shadow

Summary: Zack always knew Reno had a past he didn't like to talk about. His Company File stated he grew up in the Slums, but he never could have guessed what that really meant. Rating for language and mature themes. Mako Tears Universe.

Disclaimer: You know the drill. I own nada, zilch, ZIP, save for the computer I typed this thing up on, and the plot-bunny hopping in my head.

* * *

He had never been with anyone quite like Reno.

Not just in bed, either (though that particular aspect of their relationship was quite satisfying, thanks. My goodness, how they could move!). To Zack, Reno had this street-smart, lax attitude that concealed a deadly assassin beneath. Every outward appearance screamed 'lazy bum' from his clothes, to his stance, to his irreverent manner of speech.

But it was all just the surface. Underneath, Reno was observant, cunning, witty, and lethal. He talked a HELL of a lot, but - if anyone bothered to actually listen to him - he actually SAID nothing of importance to those who had no right to his business. He listened to everything around him, watched whatever was in sight, and Zack could just TELL the kid noticed when a shoelace was untied twenty feet away on a perfect stranger - he paid that much focus on detail. Yet, because he always seemed happy and content with how things were, no one bothered to really look into things. No one asked questions - and Zack had a feeling that's exactly how Reno wanted it, and why he was so happy-go-lucky all the time.

He was amazed at how quickly Reno could snap to attention, and even with his jacket unzipped and his shirt partially unbuttoned, he still held an air of respect. Hell, even slouching, the kid was obviously hanging on his superior's every word. And holy hell, the kid could fight. Sure, he didn't have a SOLDIER's strength, but the redhead was quick as all fuck, and what he lacked in physical strength he made up in sheer determination and ferocity.

Of course, all of this was impressive (as were most Turks and SOLDIERs), but more so was the fact that there was something the kid was hiding. Zack had read Reno's Company File the moment they'd begun working together - just as he was certain Reno had read up on him. While Zack had been raised a 'country boy', so to speak, Reno had grown up right there in Midgar - in the Sector Two Slums. It mentioned that his father had been deceased only two years after Reno was born, and that his mother had died when he was twelve - and while this kind of history may have been upsetting for any kid growing up in the country, it seemed par-for-course for the slum kids and was nothing out of the ordinary. Employment history had only 'Classified, Level 9' which struck Zack as only slightly odd. Many Turks had shady backgrounds that few would want anyone to know. Level nine meant that only the President, Heidigger, and Tseng knew Reno's history - limiting the information to only those who directly supervised him - and those they deemed necessary. Only Level 10 was higher, which limited the information to the President and those he deemed necessary. Whatever it was, Zack had to admit to being a little curious. How did a twelve year old survive in the Slums?

Obviously, that upbringing had given Reno the skills that had earned him his position in the Turks.

Sometimes Zack would get a glimpse of the "Real Reno" - days he would come home to Zack's apartment with a wavering smile and a haunted look in his eyes. Or days Zack would go to Reno's flat only to find the other man soaking in a bath - something he rarely ever did. He admittedly loved showers, and had early on confessed that baths were only for 'bad days'. Zack hadn't understood until the first time he'd caught his lover soaking.

He'd heard the shower run briefly as he walked in - he guessed it was so that Reno could rinse the filth off of him, then the shower turned off and the spigot began pouring water into the basin beneath. That had alarmed him slightly. Baths were for bad days, after all. Knowing how rough a 'good day' could be, he was curious to see just what Reno was like on these self-described bad days.

So, inquisitiveness spurring him on, he'd headed for the bathroom. What he had found left him speechless for a good minute. The redhead had cast all his blood-spattered clothes off in a corner, his goggles were resting on the sink ledge, and his hair tie was laid out next to it. Reno was sitting in the tub with his eyes closed, knees bent slightly to allow his back to rest along the tile behind him. There were scrapes, fading red marks, and bruises going yellow from the potions running through his system, trying to heal him unnaturally quickly. A few muscles twitched here and there of their own accord - a finger kept rapping lightly against the tub wall, while a leg wouldn't stay completely still. His red hair was matted to the sides of his face, giving the illusion of a girl without any short hair sticking up in front. Well, a girl from the neck up. That body was distinctly male. Thin, but male.

"Oh, Reno..." he had murmured, then knelt down beside the tub, running fingers through the near-scalding water. "Bad day?"

Reno had given a half-hearted chuckle, cracking one blue eye open to look at his lover. "Bad day..." he had murmured before Zack had proceeded to clean the young man from toe to head with slow and gentle hands.

It hadn't always been physical problems that constituted a 'bad day', either. Zack had learned that Reno took it rather personally when kids died during a mission. Even more so when those kids were from the slums. It was a surefire way to get you on Reno's shit-list - just kill a kid in front of him. He'd stop at nothing to kill you in the most painful way possible, from the little Zack had seen. Yeah, Reno took kid-killing very personally. And when he came back from a mission that had such things involved? Zack wasn't above cuddling the Turk up in a blanket and holding him through the night. There really wasn't anything else that could be done.

It was as though he had all but the most crucial pieces to the puzzle, and he knew if he just worked at it, he could figure out where all the pieces would go without those critical parts - but it'd be far easier to finish the puzzle with the pivotal clues in hand. Still, Zack had been perfectly content to allow Reno his secrets. Everyone needed to keep something to themselves, right?

At least, Zack had been content to do so until now. It had been an undercover operation. Infiltrate a brothel that some organized crime bosses frequented, gather information, then use that information to take down the entire crime unit. It was a good plan, and Reno had agreed without even a blink of hesitation. When SOLDIER was tapped to keep watch nearby, Zack had immediately offered to be part of that particular unit, and the General had agreed - while the relationship they had was frowned upon by most in the ranks, Sephiroth at least understood that when you had something to fight FOR, you fought that much harder. And training kept you (usually, at least) from doing anything overtly idiotic.

The plan had gone well up till this point. Reno played the part almost TOO well, taking men inside and letting them leave with a rather nice smile and a satisfied look upon their faces. It had Zack a little jealous, yes, but it was the job, and if anyone could pull it off well, Reno could. No one had suspected anything.

Till one jackass turned up with a knife in one hand and a pair of handcuffs in the other. Zack couldn't make out what was being said, but the bud nestled in Tseng's ear beside him was whispering everything the man was saying, and all of Reno's responses. The SOLDIER kept watching.

The man flashed the knife in front of Reno, and though the redhead smirked at the sight, even from this distance Zack could see him blanch. Reno's lips parted and he flicked back a lazy response, eying the guy up and down before shaking his head and making a shoo-ing motion. The man grew red in the face and stomped a foot, then shoved the knife right under Reno's nose. He leaned in and murmured something in the redhead's ear, and Tseng's hand raised - be prepared to move quickly, the motion indicated. Zack's heart skipped a few beats, then pounded loudly in his chest. What the hell was going on?

Reno stared at the blade, anger and fear warring in his expression. No longer did he keep that cool facade. No longer was he the Reno that didn't care. Something was wrong, and Zack wanted to know what it was.

Tseng's hand faltered slightly - unsure whether to flick his fingers forward or to let the hand fall back to his side. Seconds ticked by, Reno shouting some rather obscene words by the looks of it, and midway through his tirade, Tseng made his decision. The fingers moved forward at a rapid pace, and the six SOLDIERS stationed by him sprang into action - Zack leading the way. They were to surround the target and take him out without being seen if possible, and if not then their objective was simply to protect their fellow ShinRa employee - Reno.

It happened too quickly for Zack to even think. The rifle went up to his shoulder and he stared at the man through his scope, and as soon as he had the head lined up, he pulled the trigger. The man's hand slashed at Reno, and Reno tried to lean backward. The brick facade of the building stopped Reno's backward motion. Crimson liquid flew along with precious silver, and Zack felt a scream tear from his throat even as Reno's assailant fell.

Reno collapsed as though he were a rag-doll dropped by a careless child.

The SOLDIER moved without thinking, dropping from the building he'd been situated on and landing heavily in the dirt below, a potion already in his hand.

"Shit... Reno!" he hissed as he gathered up the slumped redhead. "Don't you dare give up on me," he commanded as the potent potion was poured down Reno's throat - which now had a gaping slash across it that spurted a liquid even more intense than his hair. "Come on, swallow it..." The plea came, a hand moving to hold the flesh closed as the potion attempted to work. All Zack could see was his lover's eyes - those dusky blue eyes - staring at him as though doing so could keep him from slipping into the glowing green beyond.

For what felt like forever, the flesh refused to knit back together, and Zack could only watch helplessly as Reno's heart pumped more and more blood from between his fingertips. Desperation filled him, and just when he was sure that Reno was slipping away, the blood stopped flowing. He took his hand away, and the flesh stayed together - though there was an angry, raw area where his lover had been cut. Relief washed through him - Reno had a chance now. Another potion was tugged out of a pocket and force-fed past the pale lips of his fallen co-worker, all the while checking on his breathing and pulse. Around him he could hear the flurry of activity - Tseng had arrived at this point, concerned over his subordinate, and was barking orders to the SOLDIERs around him. Another vial was passed to him - a darker liquid. It wasn't the massive cure-all that a mega potion or x-potion was, but a hi-potion was better than nothing, and better than the tiny potions he was giving the redhead. Like the liquids before this one, it was forced past Reno's lips.

It was then that Reno stirred, coughing weakly as clarity returned to glazed irises. "Nngh.... sorry, sir..." he mumbled as his eyes first fell on Tseng. Then a fatigued smile touched his mouth when Zack's face came into view. "Hey... err..." he frowned a bit, unsure of what to say, then sighed and tilted his head a little to rest against the arm supporting him. Zack drew in a slow breath, giving the Turk a gentle squeeze.

"Don't waste your energy talking, Red... Tseng's calling for back up now, and they'll get you up to the plate and a good hospital." Reno made the slightest of nods. "Then you're going to tell me just what the hell happened there." The Turk flinched but gave another nod.

"S'long as I get fixed up first..." he murmured, which was welcomed with a warm laugh and another affectionate squeeze that seemed to ease the tension out of Reno a bit.

"Of course."

* * *

It had taken far longer than Zack thought for the medical personnel of ShinRa to stabilize Reno to their liking. And even after they'd shoved a few handfuls of potions into the poor Turk's mouth, it had taken hours before his favorite red-head was capable of walking home alongside the SOLDIER. The trek was made in silence, Zack keeping an arm around the Turk to make the going easier. All of that from a well-placed slash that had nearly left him dead.

Yet Reno was walking at his side, EMR dangling from his wrist and head drooped on Zack's shoulder - whether out of exhaustion, affection or a little bit of both, the swordsman wasn't all that certain. When they got back to Zack's place, the dark-haired man set his weary companion into bed -- even performing the mundane tasks of removing much of his clothing and shoes. A wet cloth was brought out and used to clean the Turk's skin, careful attention paid to the still-angry line along his throat. When Reno was reasonably clean, Zack settled in beside the redhead, kissing his forehead lightly. "Sleep... we'll talk in the morning." Reno gave a faint mumble of protest, shifting to claim a proper kiss from his lover, then curled up at his side and drifted into dreams without another sound.

But while sleep came quickly to the Turk, Zack laid awake. A hand idly drew through the short tufts of crimson hair, glowing blue eyes watching the sleeping man beside him with worry obvious upon his features. Reno had known the man who had slashed his throat. Zack could tell just by the way Reno had been interacting with him. The familiarity in which Reno had spoken, the stance and lack of caution - it indicated Reno had known him. Had thought he understood how the man worked. And Zack had no clue as to who the man was, or how he knew Reno. He'd been angry, too! So very angry.

Reno gave a little snuffle-noise and nestled himself a little closer to Zack in his sleep, drawing Zack's attention away from his thoughts for a moment or two. The guy really could be adorable sometimes - though typically those moments came when the loudmouthed Turk was asleep. A light touch brushed along one of those cherry-wine-colored tattoos that curled around the edge of Reno's eye, and finally... finally... Zack allowed himself to fall asleep.

When he woke, Reno was still snoring softly at his side, though the man had certainly moved around a bit in the night. He was now draped almost completely over Zack's body, using the SOLDIER's broader shoulder as a pillow. It was as if the Turk's subconscious wanted to be closer even as he slept. Again Zack felt reminded of how darned cute Reno could be - when he wasn't flinging insults or putting you on the business end of that Mag-Rod.

He rubbed lightly along the Turk's back, caressing over his shoulders every so often until he felt the Turk stir. Then two bleary, sleepy blue eyes were peering up at the SOLDIER, looking as though he could probably remain unconscious for another day or two. He managed a smile, however, and gave a kitten-like stretch before giving a flailing attempt to sit up. Laughing a bit, Zack aided his lover in the effort, and in a minute Reno was settled happily against a few pillows, upright and semi-awake. Wide-awake would happen after coffee, Zack knew. Which would have to be made by the dark-haired man this morning, too - while Reno looked functional at the moment, Zack knew better than to let him go waltzing around the apartment just after healing up.

"Hey," he said, brushing a kiss across the Turk's lips briefly. "I'll go make coffee. Then we'll talk, all right?"

Reno perked at the idea of coffee, but frowned moments later when The Talk was brought up again. Seemingly not at all happy about the idea of spilling his guts about his past. Still, he agreed with a silent nod, returning the kiss affectionately.

Quiet. That usually meant trouble in Reno-World, and Zack mentally braced himself as he went about the process of brewing a small pot of coffee for them both. What could be so terrible that it left the Turk mute? Visions of all sorts of horrors flashed in his head. He poured the water into the resevoir, dumped a few scoops of ground coffee bean into the new filter, then closed everything up and flicked the switch on, mulling over what he already knew about Reno.

He was from the Slums. He had been on his own since he was twelve. He had no problem infiltrating a brothel - something that most men and women, regardless of pay, would balk at. He rarely, if ever, spoke about his past - but it didn't seem like it was out of shame. There was no flush to his cheeks when it was brought up. No stammering. He just refused to talk about it.

He gave a heavy sigh, shuffling to the cupboards and removing two large mugs. Milk and sugar were added to both (Reno would drink his black at work, but he preferred real milk and sugar and not the imitation crap they served at the office - better without it than with that crud, Reno had once said in his chipper, smiling way), and once the coffee was ready, it was poured into the mugs, a spoon stirring each till they were uniform in color. Then back to the bedroom he went, passing one of the mugs to his lethargic lover.

"So. Before I give myself a heart-attack imagining whatever your past could hide, please tell me what just went on yesterday?" he pleaded gently.

Reno took a few long gulps of coffee, wincing slightly at the scalding heat. Then, when his mug was half-drained and he could nurse the rest over time, he opened his mouth to tell his tale.

"It's always hard, yanno... growing up in the Slums. Always. So my story isn't that much different than any other Slum kid's... 'cept that I got out and all. Made something of myself. Most are born there and die there. I was lucky. Had what it took to get in the low levels of SOLDIER and kissed the Slums goodbye." He paused and tilted his head in a way Zack would always associate with Reno - it was the tiniest of movements, just enough that you could catch it, but not enough to be completely obvious. It meant, Zack knew, that he was digging up the right words to continue his story.

"Anyway... there's not much a kid can do to earn a living. I started stealing soon after Ma died. Nothing big... usually just food for the day. Half the time, no one even noticed the stuff was gone. But people tend to let kids slide doin' that, and at twelve I still was scrawny enough to earn some sympathy. By the time I turned fourteen... well... let's just say that I didn't look enough like a kid to get away with most of the pilfering I did. So.. it was either move into real robbery, or prostitution. One or the other. The former had the most potential, but the latter was better as it was considered unofficially legal in the slums. No one bothered to enforce any laws regarding it."

Zack leaned back a little, regarding Reno somewhat seriously. "So that's why you didn't hesitate when someone was needed to infiltrate a slum brothel." It wasn't a question, just a statement, but Reno confirmed it anyway, nodding his head a little.

"I had experience, after all, and it didn't bother me except that it would mean being with someone other than you..." Here he blushed and shook his head. "But no one else would do it. I knew they wouldn't. Their 'morals' are higher than mine, after all. Figure might as well offer, since I had the least qualms over it. Get someone uncomfortable doing it and the customers pick up quick. They'd know." Zack nodded. While he didn't like the idea of Reno pleasuring other men, it was logical at least. He didn't like it, but he couldn't disagree. And the job had to come first in their lives, or ShinRa would kick them out quicker than they could blink. Reno'd be back on the streets real quick.

"Anyway... I dyed my hair black during that time - I knew I'd eventually quit the trade at some point and wouldn't want people to easily recognize me once I did leave. It started off all right. Not terrible, at least. The people I worked with weren't all that bad - some of them were really nice, actually. But all good things come to an end, right? I accidentally got in deep with these mob guys. They liked me. Kept buying me. And of course, it was money. I wouldn't say no to money back then."

Reno went quiet for a moment, and worried, Zack's hand lifted to run through the spiky, fluffy red hair. The Turk smiled to his lover, turning his head to quickly brush a kiss across the palm of the swordsman's hand. Then back to his story he went. "They started paying to take me back to their place. Let their own business partners use me as a 'token' of good faith. And of course, I overheard things I shouldn't have. Funny how people act with a prostitute. Its like... we're a piece of furniture or something. In the room, but what... did they think we couldn't hear them. Of course, they remember all of that when you're trying to get out of the business. Suddenly, you're a possible informant." He smirked slightly.

"It started with just two guys coming to my door the day after I'd quit. I sent them home limping - they'd come to shut me up and... well...," he smirked, "you know how hard it is to shut ME up." Zack chuckled softly and nodded, then gestured for Reno to continue. "They sent five the next time. Chains and planks to beat me with... two guys with guns. I killed two of them before the other three realized it would be a good time to run off, since I wasn't going down easy."

Zack actually laughed here. Of course Reno wouldn't go down easily. Even untrained, the other man was lightning fast. Whether or not he had a blade in his hand, or a gun, or an EMR, anyone after him would have trouble catching him, let alone landing a hit on him.

"I don't remember how many they sent the next time. All I remember is that I killed fifteen of them by the time ShinRa showed up to break up the commotion. The guy who did this," he gestured to the fading line of pink along his throat, "was part of that mob. He recognized me. I told him he had to be mistaken... but he knew me. And he knew I'd killed his buddies. And that I'd sang like a canary once I was in ShinRa custody. Hence the knife."

"So that's why your history is confidential? You were an informant?"

Reno nodded. "Just like this time around, actually, 'cept back then, I was doing it to survive. This time, it was because it was my job to do."

Zack frowned slightly, pondering it all. While it wasn't the nasty, spider-infested nightmares his mind had created, it certainly wasn't GOOD, either. Still...

How could he really hold any of it against Reno? It was survival, after all. It wasn't his place to judge things like that. While he may not have liked it (and he didn't), it was something that was. He couldn't change it, and he didn't love Reno any less for it. In fact...

Arms wrapped around the redhead and he drew the Turk in for a long, heated kiss. Of course, Reno surrendered to THAT happily. After a few blissful minutes, which went by all too quickly for Zack's taste, the redhead pulled away and nuzzled at his cheek affectionately.

"After all that, one of the ShinRa guys said that a guy like me would do well in the company. So I signed up and here I am."

Zack grinned and kissed him one more time. "Yes... here you are. And I'm glad for it."

[fin]

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A/N: Yes, I know, no real citrus in my fics. But I like the fluff, dangit. So there went another LONG installment in the Mako Tears universe. Again, I thrive on reviews. Please give me some, if you have the chance!


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